‘I know weaknesses, strengths of Sri Lanka,’ says Mickey Arthur

HYDERABAD – Pakistan Team Director Mickey Arthur acknowledges his deep understanding of Sri Lanka’s “strengths and weaknesses,” stemming from his two-year stint as their coach.

Pakistan are set to face Sri Lanka in a World Cup clash in Hyderabad on October 10, offering Arthur a chance to reconnect with players he guided as their coach from December 2019 to November 2021.

Arthur shared his insights, saying, “Yeah, I know their strengths and weaknesses so we will have plans put in place for all of them. They are a dangerous side, so we will have to be at our best to beat them.”

Pakistan secured an 81-run victory over the Netherlands in a tense match in Hyderabad on Friday, marking the start of their World Cup campaign. Despite a shaky top-order performance that left them at 38-3, they managed to post a challenging total of 286, thanks to half-centuries from Saud Shakeel and Mohammad Rizwan. Subsequently, they bowled out the Netherlands for 205 in 41 overs.

Arthur expressed his satisfaction with the first win, despite acknowledging it wasn’t a flawless performance. He stated, “I enjoyed the first win even though it wasn’t a great performance. But we did enough to win, and when the game was on the line, we had players standing up.”

Pakistan is likely to maintain the same lineup for Tuesday’s match, providing another opportunity for out-of-form opener Fakhar Zaman, who scored just 12 runs against the Netherlands.

On the other hand, Sri Lanka, who were outperformed by South Africa’s record-breaking 428-5 in their opening game and suffered a 102-run defeat, will draw confidence from their resilient reply.